Chris Rickleton

As the Russian political environment creates problems for Central Asian jobseekers, Western governments have a chance to expand their clout in the region with deals for legal migration. But with the political right’s heft growing in Europe and the United Kingdom, there are limits to cooperation.

The cases of three Kyrgyz women who suffered horrific deaths at the hands of their partners are being tried in court. As the country's appalling femicide trend continues, the political will to stop it is lacking, while civil society no longer has the same space to campaign against domestic violence.

Uzbek lawmaker Alisher Qodirov has drawn comparisons to the infamous late nationalist Russian politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky due to his propensity to make outlandish statements and his seeming capacity to say things about Russia that other officials -- particularly foreign ministers -- will not.

A general crackdown on migrants in Russia following the Crocus terror attack in March and burdensome new rules for taxi drivers are pushing up fares in Russia. But the transport sector is just one of several areas of the Russian economy that is suffering from growing labor shortages.

After the Kremlin's isolation following its invasion of Ukraine, Russian nuclear energy giant Rosatom has become an even more important part of Moscow's strategy to retain prestige on the world stage. Tightly tied to Russia, Central Asia has been getting the hard sell on nuclear power.

The two Kyrgyz journalists handed harsh jail sentences last week were part of a media collective that has gone further than any other in exposing the nepotism of the ruling Japarov regime. But Japarov and his allies have shown that they will exert just as much effort trying to stop them.

There were two setbacks for Russia last week in a region it has long regarded as a sphere of influence as both Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan rejected opportunities to join blocs close to Moscow's heart. Analysts say the Kremlin is already making its displeasure known.

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev has predicted “strong competition” in parliamentary elections but, for the last 15 years, the same pro-government political factions have been winning, with opposition-minded political parties repeatedly denied registration.

An unsuccessful gun attack on the car of an ally of President Shavkat Mirziyoev's daughter has given rise to speculation that the country's family-dominated political scene might not be as peaceful as it looks from the outside.

October came and went without promised construction work beginning on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, but Kyrgyzstan broke ground on several other significant Chinese investments.